Calgary, AB–Every Woman Foundation (EWF) will host a screening of the educational documentary The Mask You Live In, by The Representation Project, in partnership with Recovery Acres Society. The screening will will take place on January 21, 2016 at the Globe Cinema Theatre at 5:30 p.m. A live panel discussion, moderated by CTV’s Tara Nelson, will follow the screening. Tickets are free before December 29. General admission tickets are $5 and are available here.

The Mask You Live In presents the personal narratives of young boys and men and features experts in neuroscience, psychology, sociology, sports, education, and media, further exploring how gender stereotypes are interconnected with race, class, and circumstance. The documentary ultimately illustrates how we, as a society, can raise a healthier generation of boys and young men.

Every Woman Foundation is a non-profit organization seeking to empower and celebrate women using an inclusive approach that encourages participation from the entire community. Equality and healing thrive with self-expression and communication.

Recovery Acres Society is a registered charity that operates a men’s alcohol and drug recovery centre in southwest Calgary known as 1835 House. Last year, 1835 House supported 339 men as they began the journey to recovery from addiction. Over the course of our 42 year history, Recovery Acres Society has helped over 13,000 men change their lives.

Every Woman Foundation Calgary presents a Screening of educational documentary The Mask You Live In & a panel discussion moderated by CTV’s Tara Nelson following the screening on Thursday 21st January 2016.

After a successful screening of the educational documentary Miss Representation from The Representation Project, in October of 2014, Every Woman Foundation will host a screening of a male equivalent, The Mask You Live In. An examination of modern masculinity by the same filmmakers is equally important. The documentary explores how our culture’s narrow definition of masculinity is harming our boys, men and society at large and unveils what we can do about it.

Every Woman Foundation believes that effective and sustainable change requires participation from all genders, ages and ethnic backgrounds. We aim to inspire others to bring people together in their own communities to promote the empowerment of woman and social change. Research shows, according to epidemiologist Richard Wilkinson, that, among developed countries, the healthiest and happiest aren’t those with the highest incomes but those with the most equality and according to the makers of the documentary The Mask You Live In, we are facing a boys and men’s crisis.

The Mask You Live In asks: As a society, how are we failing our boys? According to writer, producer and director, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the film examines: “How gender stereotypes are interconnected with race, class and circumstance, and how kids are further influenced by the education system, sports culture and mass media – video games and pornography in particular.”

The film also highlights the social and emotional needs of boys—demonstrating how healthy family relationships, alternative teaching strategies and positive role modeling by coaches and mentors can positively impact boys’ lives

Men from various backgrounds share the impact of their upbringing, relationships with their fathers, their struggles, and the deliberate choices they’ve made in raising their own children. Experts in the field, including authors, doctors, and educators, provide research as well as observations on the challenges men and boys face in our society’s unrealistic expectations of hyper-masculinity. Seamless testimony woven between compelling statistics and montages lend to the impact of this timely, provocative piece. Being expected to “man up” from a very young age exacts a heavy price on boys, and this project reveals how our current course of male identity needs to be altered.

According to Every Woman Foundation, males and females both suffer from sexualisation, stereotyping, media exposure and subsequent societal restrictions placed on them in terms of masculinity and femininity. These expectations and restrictions created by media and then us as a society are harming us all and are underlying many major issues for men and women, boys and girls. These issues, including self-loathing, intolerance and bullying and more, lead to greater problems including suicide and violence, towards women and towards us all. With this screening and panel discussion, we want to raise awareness around these issues, take them from our subconscious into the forefront of our thinking as a society so that together, we can create real and long-term change.